The cat is now worth an estimated €10m, or approximately US $13 million. (Technically, the cat is the beneficiary of a trust, with some random cat-lover the old lady met in a park as the estate's trustee.)

Dogs are richer than cats, however:

But the fortune pales by comparison with that of Gunther IV, an Alsatian who inherited from his father Gunther III, the pet of a German countess. According to the Pet Gazette, he is worth around $372m.

What I don't get about that article (well, aside from the idea of leaving your fortune to a cat) is this:

The richest cat was previously thought to be Blackie, who was left £9m by his reclusive British owner in 1988.

£9m in 1988 would be the equivalent of about £20 million today, or US $31 million. That's three times as large as the inheritance that supposedly makes this Italian kitty the "world's richest cat". So what happened to Blackie's fortune after 1988? Did he die intestate? Lose it all at Vegas? Maybe it was diluted among lots of heirs ("cat heirs"?) such that none of his descendants inherited as much as Tommaso just did.

But the fortune pales by comparison with that of Gunther IV, an Alsatian who inherited from his father Gunther III, the pet of a German countess. According to the Pet Gazette, he is worth around $372m.

What I don't get about that article (well, aside from the idea of leaving your fortune to a cat) is this:

The richest cat was previously thought to be Blackie, who was left £9m by his reclusive British owner in 1988.

£9m in 1988 would be the equivalent of about £20 million today, or US $31 million. That's three times as large as the inheritance that supposedly makes this Italian kitty the "world's richest cat". So what happened to Blackie's fortune after 1988? Did he die intestate? Lose it all at Vegas? Maybe it was diluted among lots of heirs ("cat heirs"?) such that none of his descendants inherited as much as Tommaso just did.

I don't find it too surprising that the guy in charge of writing the cat social column doesn't have a firm grasp on monetary policy and global inflationary dynamics.

£9m in 1988 would be the equivalent of about £20 million today, or US $31 million. That's three times as large as the inheritance that supposedly makes this Italian kitty the "world's richest cat". So what happened to Blackie's fortune after 1988? Did he die intestate? Lose it all at Vegas? Maybe it was diluted among lots of heirs ("cat heirs"?) such that none of his descendants inherited as much as Tommaso just did.

Obviously the cat died intestate. Cats don't have thumbs so it couldn't hold a pen to sign a will...

The pictures were hilarious, Remember_me! I'm going to show them to my sister - we have four cats between us, and we also sort of adopted our gran landlandy's three kittens.Well, that cat has nine lives to party with that money. If the rich lady was so intent on benefiting the puss, she should've made an institution for underprivileged/abused felines and benefited her furry friend's race all the more. I think it's just to spite her family and kin who were after her money. Just a romantic idea.

Considering this all happened it Italy, that gatto isn't likely to see those euro is his lifetime. I have considered leaving all of my catnip to organizations who help the world's felines. I wouldn't leave it to my own cats, lord knows they will just blow it on stuff like a squirrel sized guillotine for their French Revolution re-enactments. They love history.

kittenwithawhip wrote:Considering this all happened it Italy, that gatto isn't likely to see those euro is his lifetime. I have considered leaving all of my catnip to organizations who help the world's felines. I wouldn't leave it to my own cats, lord knows they will just blow it on stuff like a squirrel sized guillotine for their French Revolution re-enactments. They love history.